Hot hazelnut chocolate made with the Thermomix® has become a ritual in our kitchen on cold days. We toast the hazelnuts in a pan first, because it releases the essential oils and intensifies the nutty flavour. Without toasting, the chocolate tastes flat.
The dark chocolate makes all the difference compared to sweet cocoa. We use 150 g to 800 g milk, which gives a rich chocolate base without being overly sweet. The sweetened cocoa powder only goes on top as a garnish.
Hot Hazelnut Chocolate with the Thermomix®
Ingredients 0 / 6 ✓
- 50 g hazelnuts
- 150 g dark chocolate
- 800 g milk
- squirty cream
- 2 tbsp cocoa powder (sweetened)
- 4 candy canes
Instructions 0 / 5
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1
Toast the hazelnuts.
Toast the hazelnuts in a non-stick frying pan without any fat. Watch them carefully and do not let them burn!
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2
Chop the hazelnuts.
Add the hazelnuts to the mixing bowl and chop for 3 sec / speed 6.
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3
Melt the chocolate.
Break the dark chocolate into pieces, add to the mixing bowl, chop for 4 sec / speed 6, then melt for 3 min / 50°C / speed 2.
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4
Heat the chocolate milk.
Add the milk and hazelnuts and heat for 8 min / 80°C / speed 2.
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5
Garnish.
Pour the chocolate milk through a fine sieve into glasses or mugs, then top with cream and cocoa powder. Serve each with a candy cane.
Tip: If you would like to use homemade whipped cream, you can find tips for whipping cream in the Thermomix®.
Video
Nutrition per serving
Why toast the hazelnuts first
Raw hazelnuts have flavour, but not much depth. In a hot dry pan, two things happen: the essential oils are released, and the nut develops roasted notes through the Maillard reaction. This takes 3 to 4 minutes over medium heat. You notice it by the aroma, not just the colour.
Be careful: hazelnuts can go from toasted to burnt very quickly. Remove the pan from the heat as soon as the first nutty aroma rises. The residual heat carries on working. Burnt nuts add bitterness that even 800 g of milk cannot fix.
Melt the chocolate first, then add the milk
We melt the dark chocolate separately at 50°C on speed 2 for 3 minutes. Only then do we add the cold milk. This prevents the chocolate from settling on the bottom or forming lumps. At 50°C, chocolate is liquid but not yet hot enough to cause structural damage.
The chopped hazelnuts go in with the milk, not before. They float through the milk and release their flavour as they go. After 8 minutes at 80°C on speed 2, the chocolate is fully emulsified and the hazelnuts have given their toasted flavour to the liquid.
Straining is essential, not optional
After heating, the chopped hazelnuts float as small pieces in the chocolate milk. Most of them sink to the bottom when left to stand, but some remain on top and are unpleasant to drink. We therefore pour the chocolate milk through a fine sieve directly into the mugs.
The sieve catches the nut pieces but lets all the flavour compounds through. The chocolate milk stays velvety and smooth. Without straining you feel the texture on the first sip, and the nut bits settle at the bottom of the mug.
Sweetened cocoa powder only as a topping
The cocoa powder in the recipe card is sweetened, not baking cocoa. We dust it over the cream as decoration and a flavour layer. Baking cocoa would be too bitter here, because it hits the tongue directly without mixing with the sweet chocolate milk.
Squirty cream is quicker than freshly whipped cream. If you have time, you can whip cream in the Thermomix®. The candy canes are decorative and also work as a stirrer. They dissolve slowly in the hot chocolate and add a hint of sweetness.
Serve immediately or keep warm
Hot chocolate cools down quickly. We serve it straight after straining. If you want to keep it warm, place the mugs in a water bath or use pre-warmed mugs. Cold ceramic draws heat out of the chocolate straight away.
As the chocolate milk cools, a thin skin forms on the surface. This is the milk fat and chocolate emulsion setting. Stirring dissolves it again, but the texture will not be quite as velvety as when freshly made.
Goes well with: Cinnamon stars, gingerbread and vanilla crescents.
Also lovely: Jagertee (hunter’s tea) with the Thermomix®.
More hot drinks with the Thermomix®: classic hot chocolate without nuts and drinking chocolate on a stick as a gift idea.
